Who got the third stimulus check if they received SSDI

If you were receiving Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) in 2021, you were sent a third stimulus check automatically—you did not have to do anything to receive it. The payment went to the bank account or address on file with Social Security, the same way your monthly SSDI payment arrives.

The third stimulus check, officially called the American Rescue Plan Economic Impact Payment, was $1,400 per person. If you were married and both spouses received SSDI, you each got $1,400. If you had dependent children under 17, you received an additional $1,400 per child.

Social Security did not count the stimulus money as income that would reduce your SSDI benefit in future months. This was different from some other types of income—the stimulus was a one-time payment that did not affect your ongoing disability payments.

Key Takeaways

  • SSDI recipients automatically received the $1,400 third stimulus check without filing taxes or taking any action.
  • The payment was sent to the bank account or mailing address Social Security had on file for your monthly benefit.
  • Dependent children under 17 added $1,400 each to the payment, and spouses who also received SSDI each got their own $1,400.
  • The stimulus money did not count as income and did not reduce your SSDI benefit amount in any month.
  • If you did not receive the payment, you could check the IRS website or contact Social Security to trace the missing check.

When the third stimulus check was sent

The third stimulus check began going out in March 2021. Social Security prioritized sending checks to people already receiving benefits—SSDI recipients were among the first to get paid because Social Security already had their banking information and mailing addresses.

Most SSDI recipients received their payment within the first two weeks of March 2021. If you had direct deposit set up with Social Security, the money arrived in your bank account. If you received your SSDI benefit by paper check or debit card, the stimulus arrived the same way.

By the end of April 2021, the vast majority of SSDI recipients had received their third stimulus payment. A small number of people with address or account issues received their checks later, sometimes in May or June 2021.

What to do if you did not receive the payment

If you were receiving SSDI in March 2021 but did not get a third stimulus check, the first step was to check the IRS website using the "Get My Payment" tool. This tool showed whether the IRS had sent your payment, where it was sent, and when. You could access it at irs.gov even if you did not file taxes.

If the IRS tool showed the payment was sent to a bank account, but you never saw the money, you needed to contact your bank. Sometimes checks were deposited to closed accounts or accounts that had been frozen. Your bank could tell you what happened and whether the money was returned to the IRS.

If the IRS tool showed no payment was sent, or if you could not find information about your payment, you could contact Social Security directly. You could call 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778) and speak to a representative who could look up your payment status using your Social Security number.

How the third stimulus compared to earlier checks

The first two stimulus checks, sent in 2020, worked the same way for SSDI recipients—automatic payment with no action required. The first check was $1,200 per person, and the second was $600 per person. Both were sent to the same account or address where your SSDI benefit was being paid.

The third check was larger ($1,400) and included more money per dependent child ($1,400 instead of $500 for the first check and $600 for the second). The process was identical: if you received SSDI, you got paid automatically without filing anything.

One difference was that the third check had stricter income limits. If your income was above a certain threshold, you might not have received the full amount or any payment at all. However, SSDI recipients almost always fell below these limits, so most people on disability received the full $1,400.

Whether the stimulus affected your benefits going forward

The third stimulus check did not reduce your SSDI payment in any month. Social Security treated it as a one-time payment that was not counted as "income" under the rules that govern disability benefits. Your monthly SSDI amount stayed the same before and after you received the stimulus.

This was important because SSDI has strict income limits. If you earn money from work, Social Security reduces your benefit. But the stimulus checks were explicitly excluded from these income calculations, so receiving $1,400 did not trigger a benefit reduction.

The stimulus also did not affect your Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit if you received that instead of or in addition to SSDI. Like SSDI, SSI recipients received the stimulus automatically, and it did not count as income that would reduce their monthly payment.

Stimulus checks and taxes

You did not have to report the stimulus check on your taxes, and it was not taxable income. If you filed taxes in 2021 or 2022, you did not include the stimulus payment as income, and you did not owe any tax on it.

If you had not filed taxes in previous years and did not normally file, you did not need to file just because you received the stimulus. The payment was separate from the tax system, even though it was administered by the IRS.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did I have to file taxes to get the third stimulus check?

No. SSDI recipients received the third stimulus check automatically without filing taxes or taking any action. Social Security sent it based on your existing benefit record, not on tax filing status.

What if I was on SSDI but not receiving payments yet?

If your SSDI case was approved after the stimulus payments ended (around mid-2021), you did not receive a third check. The payment was based on who was actively receiving SSDI in March 2021. You could not go back and claim it later.

Did the stimulus count as income and reduce my SSDI?

No. The stimulus was excluded from income calculations, so it did not reduce your SSDI benefit in any month. Your monthly payment stayed the same.

What if my stimulus check went to the wrong address?

If the IRS tool showed your check was mailed but you never received it, you could file a claim with the IRS for a replacement. You could also contact Social Security to verify the address they had on file and update it if needed.

Did dependent children on SSDI get their own stimulus check?

No. If your child received SSDI as a disabled beneficiary, they did not get a separate $1,400 check. However, if you were the parent and had other dependent children under 17 who did not receive SSDI, you received an additional $1,400 per child.